Twelve Days of Fantasy and Ash (Christmas Special Part 4)
Where Madoka Magica decided its shocking reveal was best saved for episode three, Grimgar chooses to delay it one more episode. You will see what I mean later in this post. Episode 4 starts with Manato and Shihoru walking around town, enjoying the wildlife. Manato finally gets Shihoru to open up a bit to him, which is notable only if you have been paying attention to her character. Seeing the opening reminded me that there is an as-of-yet unintroduced character. Her involvement in the plot is sparked by the events of this episode, so I will be building up to her introduction a bit more.
The team goes into the ruins again, hoping to get some more loot from goblins. They have new skills bought from the savings they accumulated, so this is their first day testing them. At this point, their only experience fighting goblins is against groups of one or two with close-range weapons that pose little threat. As such, they see no problem with their healer, Manato, being part of the vanguard. It can be argued that part of the series is a commentary on how people can become complacent and lose their sense of caution when met with mild success. This team is at the mild success stage at the beginning of the episode. It's almost like they need someone more cautious on their party.
Following a short battle montage, there is some world building describing how the religions work in Grimgar. Each class has its own patron deity they pray to. For instance, hunters like Yume pray to Eldritch when they eat, and Manato prays whenever a goblin is killed. At this point, I don't see the purpose of including the religions, but it might just be a world building bit that does, I admit, make the setting more believable. Manato laughs at the fact the party members seem to complement each other well, and starts a discussion on the topic. See, what makes this story better than so many isekai and fantasy anime is the characters. Despite originally being normal humans, they have adapted to the Grimgar environment, creating believable yet abnormal versions of the personalities most people are used to.
When they are on their afternoon hunt, they get ambushed by a few goblins. Haruhiro loses his new dagger, and gets shot twice. Manato uses his last healing spells on haruhiro, right before being shot in the back. He is unable to meditate in time to bring his spells back, so he dies there. If there is one thing I can say about Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash, it is that it can perfectly capture emotions. The animation and voice acting perfectly convey the sense of loss and desperation felt by the party members, hoping Manato can be saved. It really helps that the voice actor for the priest to whom they bring Manato is the same person who voiced Kotomine Kirei from Fate/Zero and Diethard Ried from Code Geass.
To put the frosting on the cake, the party is given at most 5 days to bury Manato, which costs extra money. The priest offers to pay the fee, but Haruhiro declines because of his pride in being Manato's friend. Everyone is depressed, and Shihoru is in shock. The only person who opened up to her died, so she feels as though she has no lifeline. Even Ranta, the heartless bastard, was shellshocked by the experience. The music that plays at the end of this episode has become one of my favorite themes from the show. It is a sorrowful plea for a better future with a somber yet catchy melody. I would recommend listening to it even if you don't plan on watching the show. You can find it on Youtube as Rainy Tone.
